Visamavritti Pranayama - Box Breath with Extended Exhale

A Pranayama Practice

Here is the audio to follow for the pranayama practice.

Hello and welcome to Cultivating Chill. 

My name is Vikki Velasquez and thank you for joining me as we explore visamavritti (visem-vritti) pranayama.

This pranayama style is when the breath ratios are different in one or more of the four breath phases.

Experimenting with breath ratios, we’re going to revisit the box breath, but this time, with an extended exhale and followed by a much shorter breath retention. 

Breathing with an extended exhale will work towards strengthening our parasympathetic response and makes us more resilient to stress. 

Before we begin – Please note - If you have a heart condition or experience chronic breathing disorders, please do not participate in the practice but feel free to observe. Also, if at any time you feel overwhelmed or short of breath, let go of pranayama and let your breath breathe itself. 

Our modified box breath will consist of the inhale and first breath hold as a count of four while the exhale is for a count of six, and then the final breath hold is for a count of two. 

Practice will last about 5 minutes.

I will cue the breath phases.

I invite you to find a comfortable seat, either on the floor in Easy Pose or sitting comfortably in a chair or even on the bed. 

You can rest your hands on your thighs or knees, palms up or down. 

Palms up means you are open to energy.

Palms down means you are trying to conserve energy. Yogi’s choice.

I invite you to gently close your eyes.

For the moment, just let your breath breathe itself. 

As you breathe, use your inhale to lengthen the spine so the back, neck, head become aligned and chest and belly have plenty of space to move with the breath.

Use your exhale to relax the shoulders away from the ears, release any tension from the jaw, the ears, the spaces around the eyes. 

Inhale to stretch and find space. 

Exhale to relax and take up space.

Inhale the spine straightens.

Exhale the back widens.

Take a few more natural, full breaths through the nose, feeling your breath as it flows in and out. 

(about three to five natural breaths)

Let’s begin practice by taking a breath to align with one another. Inhale–exhale.

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale–1, 2, 3, 4. Hold–4, 3, 2, 1. Exhale–1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold–2, 1. 

Inhale and let the breath breathe itself. 

Release your practice and just breathe.

(three to five breaths)

If your eyes are closed, whenever you are ready, feel free to gently open your eyes. 

Let’s bring our hands to a prayer position, hands to heart center.

The light in me honors the light in you. 

Namaste.

Cultivating Chill hopes you found the information and breathing practices informative and helpful. If you have any questions or want to share anything, please feel free to leave a comment. 

Bibliography

1 - Desikachar, T.K.V. The Heart of Yoga, 67. Inner Traditions International, 1995. 

2- Nestor, James. Breathe: The New Science of a Lost Art, 229. Riverhead Books, 2020.